Edinburgh staff let down by dessert shop closure says former Jars senior manager

The Jars branch at Lister Square in the Quartermile in Edinburgh, which only opened in November last year, closed on Friday, April 25, leaving eight staff members out of a job without any redundancy pay.

The Jars branch at Lister Square in the Quartermile. | National World

Jars Edinburgh’s last senior manager, Ian Munro, who worked for the Icon Brand company which ran the Jars chain for two years, has handed in his notice after being left fuming by the way his staff were treated.

He said: “The new owners let the place go to the wall. And they let staff go without any redundancy payments. The staff were meant to be given two weeks notice but they weren’t. This has left them all, quite rightly, very annoyed. I was upset that I’d have to be letting them go, but I was told it would be done properly.

“I got a call from management on the afternoon of Thursday, April 24, to say the restaurant would be closing the next day. We have all been paid now, but there was an initial problem with the most recent wages which just made the situation worse.

“It was a tough last shift on the Friday, everyone was still a bit in shock and angry about the whole situation and how it had been dealt with by the company.”

The Jars branch in Edinburgh city centre closed for good on Friday, April 25. | National World

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Ian’s anger with how his staff have been treated has led to him leaving the company this week.

He said: “I handed in my notice because I don’t want to work for a company that treats its staff like that. People need to know how badly the staff there were treated.

“I’m worried about them. They have got bills to pay amid a cost of living crisis. I’ve got a new job lined up so I’m ok, but I’m worried about them and quite angry with the company.

“It’s horrible to see the staff treated like that.”

An attempt was made to contact Icon Brand for comment.